@Home services and facilities

Recreation

Create your own playground at home

We know your favourite parks and playgrounds are temporarily closed, so we’ve teamed up with the team at Educated by Nature to show you how you can still enjoy them in the comfort of your own home – starting with building your very own backyard cubby house!

If you like what you saw, Educated by Nature is providing online nature connection mentoring to support children in creating nature connection routines at home or in nearby natural spaces. Perfect for those who are remaining home from school or existing home-school families, these 30 minute online sessions invite children to participate in a nature challenge for the day, including building a cubby, making a contraption, creating some nature art, tracking an animal or improving their sensory awareness. Children are then invited to come back online for an afternoon session to share their results.

Sessions cost $11per family and include both the morning and afternoon sessions plus a link to the instructional video for the challenge. Sessions are aimed at 6-12 year olds but siblings of all ages are welcome to be involved. For more information, dates and bookings visit the Educated by Nature website.

COVID-19: Is it still OK to go for a walk?

Yes, it is! Recreational activities such as walking, cycling and jogging are still possible, provided people respect social distancing. Indeed many medical experts are stressing the importance of exercise, particularly walking, in the fight against Coronavirus.

Which is great news for you - why not use this opportunity to explore some of the beautiful (and mostly deserted) bike and walking trails around the City? (Okay, we know this doesn’t technically classify as an ‘@Home’ activity, but given parks and trails are one of the few places still open, we figured they deserve a shout out in the online portal!)

Gumblossom Reserve Trail

This beautiful five-hectare site is located in Quinns Rocks and preserves a vast array of native flora. Download the map and take breaks at the information stops that describe the trees and plants. If you fancy being a citizen scientist, you can download field guides and recording sheets from ClimateWatch and record your observations of the animals and plants you see.

Approximate time to walk: 30 minutesFooting: part grassed, majority limestoneDogs: yes, but must be on leadBikes: unpowered, yes, but must stay on tracks (watch out for walkers!); trail bikes no – call the Rangers on 9405 5000 if you see trail bikes

South Mindarie Trail

Take a stroll in the South Mindarie Foreshore Reserve and explore an area where the ‘youngest’ dune system is between 2000 and 10,000 years old. See if you can spot a Western Brush Wallaby or Honey Possum, or one of the 26 species of birds that call the area home.

With various places you can join or exit the trail, you can plan a short stroll, or a longer walk that takes in all seven information stops. You may also encounter some of the 31 species of reptile that call the dunes home. Staying on the tracks and wearing closed shoes and long trousers is highly recommended.

Approximate time to walk: 1-2 hoursFooting: all limestone, some hillsDogs: yes, but must be on leadBikes: unpowered, yes, but must stay on tracks (watch out for walkers!); trail bikes no – call the Rangers on 9405 5000 if you see trail bikes

Mindarie Foreshore & Kinsale Park Trail

If you’re a fan of lizards, especially geckos, this is the trail for you. It’s also home to a small but growing population of quenda (a subspecies of bandicoot), and you could also spot an osprey, or one of more than two dozen other bird species.

Keen gardeners will enjoy information stop 4, which gives you all the information about which of the plants found in this bushland can be used to create a home garden that will support native birds and reduce your maintenance costs. It should go without saying, but please don’t remove any plants from this or any other reserve.

Approximate time to walk: 1-2 hoursFooting: some bitumen; sand in the Kinsale sectionDogs: yes, but must be on leadBikes: unpowered, yes, but must stay on tracks (watch out for walkers!); trail bikes no – call the Rangers on 9405 5000 if you see trail bikes

10th Light Horse Trail

This 1.2km trail takes you through the Second World War campground of the 10th Light Horse in Wanneroo. While it bears the distinctive horse lines and camp group foundations, as the site remains mostly uncleared, as it was when 600 horses and men made it their home from late 1943 to April 1944.

Significant sites along the trail are marked with information signs and if you download the trail bundle through the Discover Wanneroo app, you can listen to audio recordings along the way.

Approximate time to walk: 30 minutesFooting: all limestone, not suitable for prams or wheelchairsDogs: yes, but must be on leadBikes: unpowered, yes, but must stay on tracks (watch out for walkers!); trail bikes no – call the Rangers on 9405 5000 if you see trail bikes

Perry's Paddock

Just off Ocean Reef Road at the Wanneroo Road end, Perry’s Paddock was originally used for foot and horse racing in the 1920s and now forms part of Yellagonga Regional Park.

A variety of trails and scenery have led some to call this the Kings Park of the north, and it’s open 24/7.

Approximate time to walk: variableFooting: gravel, with boardwalks, concrete or bitumen in the wider parkDogs: yesBikes: unpowered, yes, but not on all paths in the wider park; trail bikes no – call the Rangers on 9405 5000 if you see trail bikes

Yaberoo Budjara Heritage Trail

While walking the full 28km trail will probably leave you socially distant from everyone else, breaking it down into the five separate, shorter trails is probably the wiser path. This trail highlights features of natural, Aboriginal and historical significance and is based on local Whadjuk Noongar elder Yellagonga's tribes' movement track.

You’ll begin on the shores of Lake Joondalup and finish in Yanchep National Park, so downloading the map is highly recommended.

Approximate time to walk: 1-4 hours per section; 14 hours for the full trailFooting: rough, sandy in places (experienced walkers only)Dogs: noBikes: no – call the Rangers on 9405 5000 if you see trail bikes

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF COUNTRY The City of Wanneroo acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land we are working on, the Whadjuk people. We would like to pay respect to the Elders of the Noongar nation, past, present and future, who have walked and cared for the land and we acknowledge and respect their continuing culture and the contributions made to the life of this City and this region.